[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 161 (Wednesday, December 8, 2010)]
[House]
[Pages H8246-H8247]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
THE NIGHTMARE ACT
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the
gentleman from California (Mr. Rohrabacher) is recognized for 5
minutes.
Mr. ROHRABACHER. Mr. Speaker, tonight this Congress passed the so-
called DREAM Act. Several of us on the floor of the House said that
this act would be more accurately referred to as the ``affirmative
action amnesty act.''
The bill is a piece of legislation that the American people should
pay close attention to, and they should see whether or not their
Representatives in Congress are, indeed, representing their interests
or if they are involved in supporting the interests of the people who
are not citizens of this country and who have come here illegally.
{time} 2120
Now in this case, this bill would not grant amnesty to all illegal
immigrants, but instead, the reason it's called the DREAM Act is
because it would legalize the status of several million illegals who
are young people in our country. Well, what does several million new
citizens--or should we say legal residents--of our country mean to the
well-being of the American people? Yes, we understand that several
million young illegals now made legal in their status would certainly
be their dream, but what does it do to other Americans? What is the
effect? Is it a dream or a nightmare? The American people need to look
and see who voted for what and who is representing whose interests
here.
I want to note that illegal immigration is probably one of the
greatest threats to the well-being of my constituents, and they
understand that. And I would think that people throughout our country
understand that the quality of our education is going down, the quality
of America's health care is going down, our personal security--meaning
the security of our neighborhoods and our families--is going down as
the criminal justice system is put under incredible strains by this
massive flow of illegals into our country.
By legalizing the status of 2 million younger illegal immigrants,
what we are doing is making sure that those people who are considering
coming to our country illegally will certainly bring their children--
all of them--with them, realizing that the chances are that if the
American people see that someone's here illegally and is a young
person, we now have set the precedent that we will legalize their
status sometime in the future.
What we are really talking about is encouraging a massive flow of
illegals into our country bringing their children with them. And what
will that do to the education system of our country? What will that do
to the health care requirements that people now are finding that their
own health care facilities are overcrowded and that the budgets for
providing health care to the less fortunate are being strained to the
breaking point throughout the country?
This bill was done at the expense of the American people. The young
people who they are helping, the young people who supposedly would be
assisted in getting a college education if they go to school, they're
going to have their status legalized. Yes, those people may be helped,
but it is being done directly at the expense of the American people.
This is about as bad as it gets when we have Members of Congress
that, instead of considering what this will do, what their actions will
do in harm to their own constituents, have decided just to, yes, side
with those people--who are wonderful people overseas. There is no doubt
about most of the young people we are talking about, and most of the
illegal immigrants coming into our country are wonderful people, but
their well-being--we are not being selfish by suggesting that at a time
of unemployment, a time when the budgets for all of our own programs
are being strained to the breaking point, that we have to take care of
our own people before we encourage other people to come here illegally.
I am proud that our country has a very liberal and open policy for
immigration. We allow more legal immigrants into our country than any
other country of the world. In fact, all of the other countries of the
world combined do not permit the legal immigration into their societies
as we permit into America. But if we don't watch out for our people, if
we do not carefully look at this issue and try to say what is good for
our people, our people will be severely damaged, and that will be the
product of the DREAM Act. It will be the Nightmare Act of the American
people.
Perhaps the worst element of this is this bill--and I know there are
many people who are suggesting that that's not true, but it is true
that this bill will provide an affirmative action status for those
illegals who have been legalized who happen to come from a minority
background. Now, most illegal immigrants who come here are Hispanics or
some other minority. Thus, if their status is legalized, all of a
sudden all of the laws that give preference to minorities in the United
States, all of these preferences are provided to these people who were
illegal just a few days ago.
We are not providing equality. What we're providing is that illegals
now will take their spot at the head of the line when it comes to job
training, when it comes to education and being accepted at
universities. In terms of all of these types of programs in which
racial preferences have been written into the law, these illegals will
now have a status ahead of U.S. citizens. This is about as bad as it
gets.
This Congress is supposed to represent the interests of the American
people. In this case, the interests of the American people were
betrayed with a misplaced value system being focused on the plight of,
yes, some very deserving young people--several million of them--who are
here illegally. I would hope that the American people take a look
closely at this vote and realize what it signifies.
There are many people struggling right now in our country. Our social
programs are strained to the breaking point. And yes, what happens when
you legalize the status of several million young people and you make
sure that these young people, many of whom are of a minority status,
that they then receive the preferences written into our
[[Page H8247]]
law for our own minority citizens? It will cause great damage to our
country and to the very most vulnerable Americans that we are supposed
to be representing.
So tonight I would ask the American people to look closely at the
vote of their Member of Congress. Was their Member of Congress
representing them? Was their Member of Congress representing, and with
all good intentions, but representing the interests of someone else? I
would say that the illegal immigration issue is an issue that reflects
that dichotomy more in our country than any of the other major issues
that we face as a people.
So tonight the choice is stark, and the people here have cast their
vote. It is now time for the American people to hold us accountable; if
we are representing their interests and the interests of the less
fortunate people in our society or whether or not we are giving away
scarce resources and putting our own people in jeopardy in order to
perhaps attract as voters, or whatever, illegal immigrants who are
coming to our society and thus attracting even more illegals to come
here. And of course, now after they come here, they will make sure that
they bring their entire family. And once, by the way, a young person is
legalized, that young person, through family unification laws and
programs, will be able to then start the action necessary to bring even
more and more illegals into our country to have their status changed.
Is this in the interest of the United States? Is this in the interest
of the American people? I say no. And I say that the American people
need to pay attention and judge us on our vote on this act tonight, the
DREAM Act, which is the Nightmare Act.
Let's wake up, America. Your country is being taken from you and
given to somebody else.
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